


Memorial Of The Air Nomads

by Dawn_101



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aang (Avatar)-centric, Aang Needs a Hug (Avatar), Air Nomads (Avatar), Airbending & Airbenders, Big Brother Sokka (Avatar), Gen, Katara (Avatar) Needs a Hug, Katara (Avatar)-centric, Late Night Conversations, Post-100 Year War (Avatar TV), Post-Avatar: The Last Airbender, Precious Aang (Avatar), Soft Toph Beifong, Zuko (Avatar) Needs a Hug, Zuko-Centric (Avatar)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-11
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-18 14:53:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29984520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dawn_101/pseuds/Dawn_101
Summary: Once peace has been achieved, Aang tasked himself with restoring the Air temples and Freeing the spirits of those Nomads lost in the war. On completion, Aang hopes to show the world what being an Air Nomad is all about by holding a party to celebrate their lives.Along the way, stories are shared between friends and greatest joys, fears and regrets are revealed.
Relationships: Aang & Katara (Avatar), Aang & The Gaang (Avatar), Aang & Toph Beifong, Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Aang/Katara (Avatar), Aang/Sokka (Avatar), Mai/Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Suki (Avatar)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Statues

The long, green grass billowed in the breeze as the final statue rose. Fresh out of the ground and in the shape of a human being, representing the life of a friend and a father figure who was finally being put to rest. The smooth rock showed the man's wise features from his bald head, mustache and intelligent brow. His stone robes seemed to move with the breeze and one hand was raised resting a stone fruit pie balanced on his palm. 

Aang stepped forward to place an old relic that belonged to this man over the statue's head so the wooden pendant would rest where it always should. Monk Gyatso could finally rest in peace and Aang could rest knowing that every single Airbender was at peace after 103 years. 

It had been strenuous work, finding the remains and using his connection to the earth to identify who the bones belonged to. It had not been easy either, to hold the bones of his people, people who he loved, and carry them out from the temples they had defended into the meddows beyond. It had been the right thing to do, giving each individual a statue so anyone who looks upon them will see them the way Aang did and not just the empty buildings, lost in time. Their bones however were cremated and flown up on Appa to be scattered, so they could be free once more. 

There were 63 statues, standing tall to overlook the Southern Air Temple, 140 for the Easten Temple and 1,332 for the Westen Temple. 170 statues had been raised throughout the kingdoms where the nomads had roamed. As the Avatar and the last Airbender, he was determined that all nations could remember his people, remember the nation's sacrifice and the consequences of war. 

It had been terribly hard to realise that although women, children and men had been murdered by the Fire Nation, Aang had to let go of that anger. He had to forgive. It was easier to know that the new Firelord was trying to restore the Nation's honor, sending Fire Nation citizens (for the army had been disbanded) out into the world to try and fix what they could. 

However Aang could not ignore his gref and sank down on his knees. As he looked upon the face of Monk Gyatso, the memories, his shame and guilt came flooding back. The lessons he had been taught by his friend. “ I left you,” Aang started. “I left you when I should have stayed and fought alongside you till the bitter end. To think my whole Nation was slaughtered because the Air Nomads was the next Nation in the cycle. To think that the same was almost done to the Southern water tribe in case it had skipped the Nomads or I had been killed. Katara’s mother had been killed to protect her, so the Fire Nation didn't know she was a bender. To think that the world needed the Avatar and I wasn't there because I ran away and got stuck in a block of ice!” Aang dropped his head as tears landed on the grass. The wind had picked up as well, the grass being thrashed around. “I am so incredibly sorry for leaving. What I am trying to say is… I miss you and there is so much more that I never had the chance to tell you.” Aang pulled at the grass around him, the ripping and snapping and the smell was soothing. It would grow back, so no long lasting damage. There was so much to tell Gyatso. The storm he was caught in, waking up in Katara’s arms and all the adventures that followed with Katara, Sokka, Toph, Zuko and of course Appa and Momo too. All the people they met along the way who they helped and changed their lives for the better. 

Looking up at the statue, and all the others too, Aang knew that he would be able to tell them everything with time even if it wasn't quite how Aang wanted. There was something that needed to be said straight away though. 

“I hope you know that justice has been achieved. I took Oezi’s bending away, rather than take his life. It was the only way that the violence could be stopped and an option that I could live with. The world is at peace at last but I am not going to let the world forget about the war and the Air Nomads! Zuko and myself are planning to build a new city, somewhere that all nations can live together in harmony, and not divided. There will be no walls like in Ba Sing Se, either. People can mingle no matter what their class or status is. They can elect someone to run the city or have a whole committee if they want!” Aang smiled. “ You are also the last of the Nomads that I have freed, now all of you guys will be able to be free forever. One day, I will join you and we will be together again, my friends.” 

  
  
  


“Aang?” it was a voice that he would recognise anywhere. Aang grinned as he spun and saw Katara standing, looking at him with wonder. Darting forward, he crashed into her, wrapping his arms around her. She smelt of the ocean as he kissed the top of her head. He had grown in the last few years and Aang was now much taller than Katara and catching up with Sokka. 

“It's so good to see you!” he said before turning to the statues, taking a deep breath. “Look Katara! I've done it. Every single Air Nomad now has their own statue, so they can be remembered forever.”

She looked over the stone sculptures, “it's just like the Avatar statues. I am so proud of you, Aang,” she smiled. “I know they would be too.”   
  


Surprising Aang, she slapped him across his face. 

“What was that for?” Aang yelled, rubbing his cheek. 

“For not letting me help you!” she glared. “And I haven't seen you in twelve months.” 

Aang sighed, “ I'm sorry, I just needed to do this myself.”

“I know.”

“So are the others here yet?” 

“Yes! They are all waiting for us in the courtyard,” she grinned. She turned away to walk the way she had come, but Aang caught her wrist, pulling her back to him. 

“Like you said, it's been a year!” and he took her in his arms to lock their lips together.


	2. The Air Temple

“TWINKLE TOES!” Toph ran up and punched his arm before grabbing him around the waist in a tight hug. “I hate to admit it, but life has been boring without you!” 

“Hey! Does that mean you missed me? I'm going to need your help setting up for tomorrow, if thats ok?”

Toph pushed away from him and folded her arms, “ Oh, don’t push your luck! After refusing to let me help you with the statues, the building repairs,everything else too!” she stomped her foot sending Aang up into the air on a rock. 

He cringed as he drifted back to earth. “I thought you would want to work on your plans for the academy and anyway, this was personal. After I ran away and left them to their fate, it's the least I could do to say sorry.”

“No, they will be thanking you!” a new voice cut in. 

Aang turned to see Zuko standing there. They bowed low to each other before moving to clasp hands. 

“Firelord Zuko, you don’t understand, they are dead because of me, I left them…” 

“Zuko is just fine, Aang,” he corrected with a shake of his head. “Fine. You left them and survived. You survived and defeated my father and have restored balance with the rest of the world, despite a few hiccups. Now you have single handedly restored the air temples and freed the spirits of the people who died. You have made your people proud.” 

“You make it sound so easy. That I am just meant to accept that I have done a goor job and deserve a pat on the back but that doesn’t change the fact that i'm here and they are not. I'm still the last one!” Aang looked out over the meadow where the statues stood at the edge of the cliff. How was he meant to accept their praise? 

Katara stepped in and wrapped her arms around him and spoke in her kind and gentle voice, “Aang, I know I can't begin to imagine how hard it must have been for you to come out of that Iceberg and find out how much things have changed. All we could do at the time was try and stop the war and do our best and I believe that things happen for a reason. Zuko is right, if you had stayed, you would have died and been reborn as a waterbender who would have been taken away or worse in your infancy. Then what? The Fire Nation would have won and the whole world would have been destroyed.”

“I guess,” Aang replied, knowing that she was right. That didn't stop the pain but it did make it easier to carry. It was also true that it had actually been only this past year that he had been able to grieve properly. There had been the war, then all the peace agreements and a few uprisings to sort out, the plans for a new city to be drawn up and spirit duties too. He looked into Katara’s calming eyes, he had really missed her, “I love you.” 

Zuko chuckled, “And from that love will come many children which will be waterbenders and airbenders.”

Children? He hadn’t even considered that. He didn't know anything about them! Monkeyfeathers!

“Hey, that's my sister you're talking about!” Sokka stomped in, “and I want this party G rated, thank you!” 

Zuko ducked his head but couldn't help commenting, “it's not your party.”

Sokka pulled a face and rounded on Aang and Katara, “You will be supervised at all times, no sneaking off or I will hunt you down and -”

“Sokka!” Katara Yelled and water whipped him. “We do not need to be chaperoned! Anyway i'm not - we are not ready for that. I can’t believe you would think that we would be that irresponsible.” 

Sokka turned back to Zuko, “ Hey Zuko, Thanks Zuko.”

The corner of Zuko's mouth quirked up, “Could have just kept your mouth shut Sokka. Don't forget I know what you and Suki were up to… and how old were you?”

Sokka flushed bright red. Aang had never seen that before and thought that was pretty funny. 

Toph laughed, “I'm surprised that anyone didn't know!”

“THAT IS ENOUGH!” Sokka yelled who was now the same colour as a beetroot. “I can't believe that I traveled the world with you guys. Aang, show us what you have done with the place, it looks impressive.”

“Sure!” Aang replied and leapt forward eager to show his friends what he had been upto. 

The temple walls had been fixed and repainted, and the tiled floor repaired so the building was in a much better condition. Being both an air bender and a water bender came in really handy with the cleaning because there was a lot of cleaning to do. The Avatar sanctuary had been restored too and the past Avatars statues stood proud as they spiraled around the room and up towards the ceiling. Where before there had been gloom, was now light where small holes had been put in. 

“Im impressed!” Sokka said. “It's way better than you know, the first time we were here.” 

“Yeah, I would like to think so. I didn't want to change anything too much cause you know, it's still a sacred place. A sanctuary where hopefully people will want to visit.” 

“Well that's cool,” Sokka grinned. “I think non airbenders can really get something out of this place you know, everyone I have spoken to, have really opened their eyes to the other nations. They saw us traveling together and working together in harmony and wanted that too. They want to know how to be one people rather than four nations.”

“Iroh’s dream come true,” Zuko sighed happily. 

Aang smiled, “ I couldn't have hoped for better. Anyway how is it being Private Investigator Sokka?”

“It’s great,” Sokka grinned. “ I get to travel round the world with Suki and we get to solve mysteries and crimes all the time. I get paid for being nosey which just means I can afford food, don’t have to sleep in a tent and can shop as much as I want. I bought myself a new detective outfit and Suki got a hat.”

“She got a hat?”

“Yeah, she didn't even wear it!” 

Aang could just imagine Sokka turning up in some flashy long coat, hat with that magnifying glass and carrying a new bag with more stuff in … and then handing Suki a hat. Sokka hasn't grown any more humble about worldly possessions. 

“Well maybe she thought her head would get hot wearing a hat?” Aang offered. 

Sokka sighed, “Hot headed she was, she went back to Kioshi for a whole month.”

“Oh,” Aang decided it would be best to just carry on with the tour. 

Aang showed them where he had had his meals and played Pai sho with Monk Gyatso and where they had thrown pies at the other monks. A once dusty library held books about the nomadic way of life, food, history and so on. “The library had originally been empty and I had feared that everything had been destroyed, but there are actually air vents that circulate under the building and someone had thought to hide them down there!” 

“So it's like at the Northern Air Temple, they had vents,” Katara said. “That's how I was able to glide when we were there.” 

Aang grinned at her, “Your right about there being vents but what helped you glide is the thermals that rise up the mountain. That's why the temples were built up the mountains so there would be more lift!” 

Continuing, there was the room where he had found out he was the Avatar and the meditation dome, his reclaimed bedroom and they finished up in the large courtyard where he had first thought up the air scooter. He had left this part untouched once he realised that nature had moved in. Vines hung down the walls, blooming with pink flowers and flying lemurs had moved in, chattering away and chasing bugs.

Momo saw them approaching and flew to Aang's shoulder, chattering to him. “Hey buddy, you were glad when you saw that there were more lemurs weren't you boy,” Aang laughed when Momo licked him before flying off to a fruit tree. “ I was thinking we could have our feast here so I need some stone brought in to make tables and chairs. I got some from the cliff yesterday which is outside”

“Why not just use this floor?” Toph asked.

“These are ancient tiles Toph, I don't want them to get damaged with the bending,” Aang had considered it but it just didn't feel right to bend  _ these  _ tiles. 

Toph shrugged and proceeded to bend the rocks outside into the courtyard and then cut, shape and place tables and chairs. Toph smirked and cracked her knuckles before thrusting a hand out towards the entrance arch way. 

Aang felt a moment of unease, until a large clump of metal flew in from somewhere off site and landed in Toph's hand,“Go find something else to do, I will handle this.” 

“Right, well we still need to collect firewood, harvest some fruits and nuts from the forest below, source some water and sort out where everyone can sleep.” 

So they split up and worked for hours, foraging, gathering and sorting. Appa was a great help and transported things up to the courtyard whilst Aang had his own things to do. 

Cooking!

Aang had been practicing making Air Nomad recipes for months and had chosen the best and his favorites to make for the occasion from delicious custard tarts, fluffy bao buns and pineapple and pepper rice. What was great about nomad food was that they were made to last a journey so could be made in advance and stored easily. Aang realised that most of the stuff was quite sweet, even the supposedly savory recipes but what Air Nomad wanted to be low on energy! Aang chuckled to himself, thinking how the others will get a sugar rush and what madness will follow. He didn't invent the Air Scooter after eating boring stews!

Aang looked around the kitchen, seeing the workspace where breads were kneaded and left to rise; The fire dome where things were cooked and baked and the open fire stove for the soups and stews. There was a hatch that led to a basement, a great place for hide and seek and a hole in the wall looking out over the ocean. 

That was the best thing about the temple, Aang decided. The view of the ocean and the fact that no one was ever trapped in a stuffy building. The holes throughout acted to allow light in and let the breeze flow through the entire building so wherever he was, he was connected to his element and felt free. 

Aang remembered the first time he had gone inside a building that wasn't an air temple, he had just met Kuzon and was getting up to mischief in the Fire Nation. Kuzon had smuggled Aang into the palace kitchen of all places - where he worked, and was laughing at Aang’s expression. 

“You look so nervous, if you don’t loosen up, you're going to get caught a lot sooner. Act like you belong!”

Aang hadn’t liked at the time how it seemed inevitable that they would get caught. However Kuzon had said that it would be a fun game and they could eat lots of food so he tried to see it from his point of view. That was easier said than done when trapped in a stuffy palace kitchen underground with firebenders blasting fire flakes and stir frying over huge flames inches away. The smell and the heat was stifling and the fire intimidating and aggressive, even just cooking food. Aang hadn’t been able to get out of there fast enough, back outside into the fresh air that swirled around him and flowed from one place to another in a never ending journey. He learned and adapted, even if it was only to tolerate the heat and still air rather than enjoy it but a happy Kuzon made for a happy Aang. 

  


  
  



	3. Deep reflection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a pretty deep one, enjoy.

It was evening when the gang had met up in a circular courtyard, overlooking the sea at sunset. The gang had decided that it would be a good idea to camp like the old days, with just their sleeping bags and a fire to make the most of their time together. Appa and Momo had come to join them too, allowing Aang to snuggle into the fur and stroke Momo until he purred. 

Aang felt camping was a good decision because they were literally a family and always would be. It would be comforting to be near them and hear the occasional snore. He had missed them everyday that he had been away from them and wanted their short time together to last forever. It was a reminder of all they had been through and it seemed that the others had thought so too. 

“I was thinking -'' Sokka spoke, “ this reminds me so much about our time at the Westen Air Temple. Back then we had just escaped with our lives and needed a hiding place and that was the perfect place to hide whilst we rethought our plans.”

“It wasn't good enough to hide from me!” Zuko laughed. He was in his sleeping bag, hands behind his head. His hair splayed out where it was loose and had grown so much and the fire light played over his scar. Aang didn't really notice it that much anymore, it was just another part of Zuko and in a way made him who he was. 

Katara laughed from her place between Sokka and Zuko, “Oh yeah, the best introduction you could think of ‘Hey, Zuko here’? Com’on after all you had done to us, you could have come up with a special speech or something!”

“If I remember correctly, you had no intention of listening to what I had to say, regardless of how I said it,” Zuko glared at her. “For your information, I did practice but feedback on my speech was quite limited. In the end, I just had to go with my gut and had never felt more nervous in that moment, except for one other time.” 

Katara opened then closed her mouth, unable to argue back. He had a fair point in Aang’s opinion, she had been outright hostile and difficult to persuade that he was a changed person. 

“I listened to you!” Toph announced. “Plus you dealt with combustion man.”

“Hey!” Sokka cut in. “It was my Boomerang that did it, Zuko was merely the distraction I needed.”

“I almost got blasted off that cliff! Thanks Sokka,” Zuko muttered.

“Your welcome. It was your almost sacrifice that convinced the majority of us that you had changed,” Sokka shrugged. 

“If it makes you feel any better Zuko, Aang cost me my World Rumble Champion title, and a lot of money when he met me.” 

“You think that an earthbending competition title being lost is worse than being knocked off a cliff?” Katara wondered. 

“In equal amounts to having my parents hire the rumble organiser and my old pathetic teacher being sent after me and stuffing me in a cage. The Blind Bandits reputation was in shreds and all because of twinkletoes cheating.” 

“Well he was looking for a teacher, not a fight,” Katara said. “Right Aang?”

“Right,” he agreed. 

“Well- well Katara and I only met Aang because Katara got mad at me on a fishing trip,” Sokka declared. “Before, I just got randomly wet when she bent water accidentally. Now she is a super master and will now bend at me on purpose. I feel like I am in constant danger whenever I am anywhere near her.”

Aang had expected Katara to laugh but she didn't. Neither did she argue back, to say if Sokka was less annoying then she wouldn't feel the need to do it. Everyone else seemed to notice her silence too and a change in mood and lifted their heads to see Katara sitting up, arms wrapped around herself. 

Oh no. 

“Katara?” Sokka asked hesitantly from her side, sitting up too. “I was joking. I don't wish you wasn’t a bender, I'm glad you were mad cause otherwise, we  _ wouldn't  _ have met Aang. Katara, Im sorry.” 

Katara sniffed. “Don't apologise, you were right. I was so angry and I lost control enough to crack open an iceberg. Then once I got better, I had become more aggressive, threatening with violence even without thinking about it. It became second nature to use my abilities to get what I wanted. The only reason we even found Toph is because I attacked and froze those boys to force them to tell me. Over time, my whips were more powerful, ice shards were sharper and could do some serious damage or kill if I hit them wrong.”

Everyone was silent as Katara continued, “When we met Hamma and when she taught me - when she taught me about, you know … blood bending, I felt so awful about using it against her but reasoned that it was to protect you guys because she was hurting and controlling you. I vowed that I would never use blood bending again, but I did.” Katara hid her face in her hands. 

Aang’s heart stuttered, he had no idea she had ever used it again. He had felt so helpless when he was being controlled by Hamma, it was so wrong - but it sounded like Katara had used it again and with intent too. He felt nauseous as he tried to work out when this would have been and what would have driven her to do it when Zuko caught his eye. It was a look with meaning and Aang suddenly understood. When she was looking to revenge her mothers murder.

Zuko spoke up, “ I was there with you Katara and even though I felt your anger,    
I don't think you would have killed him no matter how angry you were.” 

“But i - I  _ wanted to do it! _ That's what has upset me. I always thought that Water was a fairly peaceful element, that The Fire Nation was bad and the Water Tribe was good; That I was a peaceful person who could heal injuries but I guess I am not that good a person,” Katara sighed. 

It was quite a burden to carry, thinking your use of elements was dangerous, but if anyone knew about being dangerous, it was him as the Avatar. “Katara, every element can be dangerous because they have immense power behind them. Even in the natural world there is danger from tides and currents, storms and hurricanes, forest fires and rock slides. As for benders … people can be capable of both great good and bad no matter what nation they are from and whether they are benders or not. As the Avatar, responsible for bringing peace and harmony, I have all four elements in me and have to be prepared to use them.

“Remember how I burned you, I vowed that I would never fire bend again cause I thought it would only cause pain. Jong Jong thought so too, ‘a curse’ is what he called firebending, but the dragons showed me and Zuko that it was also life and beautiful and firebending is just as much a part of me as airbending. The Avatar state is a defence mechanism but is brought on by fear or rage. You saw how I lost control here last time Katara, you brought me back and later you saved my life after I was struck by Azula. The other times I was in the avatar state, you told me your concerns about it but you supported me and my decisions. You have the most caring and courageous spirit and it's a gift. Over the years, you calmed, comforted me and told me I wasn't alone. You also supported and believed in me and you loved me for all that I am. So even if you think you are too aggressive or are capable of doing bad things, so is everyone else and it's what you do with it that counts. You realised that it was not worth killing that man and let him go, I realised that I needed to accept who I was and control my powers. The point is that it's ok to be scared and it's ok to make mistakes because we are human and we can use it to learn and make ourselves better. It is reassuring though, that I have people who help me through things or to tell me that I'm an idiot. Together we left our homes, made sacrifices, learned about ourselves and each other and managed to change the world.”

Katara’s eyes glistened in the firelight and tears on her face but there was also a huge smile too, “Thanks Aang, what you said has given me a lot to think about.”

Sokka wiped his eyes on his sleeve, “That was some speech Aang but that's not going to make me regret attacking Haan anytime soon.” This brought out a laugh from Katara and everyone else followed suit, even Zuko and Toph who didn't know who Haan was. 

Aang though was still trying to think about why Zuko would be nervous when he found them. He had never seemed nervous when he had chased them before or tried to capture them, or turned on them in the catacombs. He was always determined and scary. Aang asked Zuko firstly why he had been nervous and secondly what topped that. Aang thought that it would have been when he was meant to duel his father which would make sense. 

Zuko didn't answer at first but before Aang could ask a second time, he spoke. “Aang, it was terrifying to think that I was trying to approach you with a completely different aim. I had realised how many mistakes I had made, how many people I had let down and who I should actually care about and whose approval I should want. Before, I always naturally assumed that it should be my father’s approval and would do anything to obtain it. I walked around like I deserved respect because I was a prince, without considering if I had ever earned it. However once I actually got it and returned home, I realised it wasn't what I wanted at all. It was in that war meeting that I realised that I wanted a type of change that couldn't happen from within the Fire nation. For that, I needed a new way of thinking and well ... to betray my family. I knew that my father needed to be taken out and that was your destiny to do just that, I just needed to help you and by becoming your fire bending teacher, that was the way forward. 

“For that, I needed your approval and at that point, knew that I had done nothing to deserve it. Technically, Uncle told me to set your bison free that time. So my future was literally in your hands and I had no idea what you would say,” Zuko closed his eyes. “So even though I couldn't possibly expect you to say yes, I feared your refusal. I didn't have any other path to take and so without you, I would have been completely lost. Don't get me wrong, I knew I was asking the impossible but I was terrified.” 

Aang considered this.“ That would make sense but I disagree about you being lost. Even without us, you  _ had _ changed in a way that gave you new goals and that would be your direction. You would have found Uncle and found a way with him to make that new plan, even if it was small. What i'm trying to say is that you underestimate your abilities. You did it Zuko, you found your own path rather than follow the one that was planned out for you. You struggled and learned how the world really worked which I imagine was different to how you were taught. If our time in Ba Sing Se and my short time in a Fire Nation School was anything to go by - that was a great achievement.” Zuko raised an eyebrow at the mention of school but didn't say anything. Aang smiled at his friend, “You managed to defeat your crazy sister with Katara’s help, even saving her life which I am grateful for. You have done more than just earn our approval Zuko, you have found a family. A lifelong and unbreakable family.

“That goes for the rest of you guys too. We are an unbreakable family!” 

“Aww,” sounded from around the campfire. 

“I would so hug you all if I could actually be bothered to get out of this sleeping bag,” Sokka announced, his voice muffled by that sleeping bag. 

“We will get him in the morning,” Katara spoke, also sounding muffled but much happier. 

“Yeah, I look forward to it,” Toph added. 

Zuko said nothing but a weird cough came from where he was laying. 

“Alright then,” Aang grinned sleepily. “Night Katara, night Toph, night Sokka, night Zuko, night Appa and night Momo!”

And as more good nights were exchanged, the fire cracked and popped and the stars shined in there millions from above. 

  
  



End file.
